Year in Review
May

Wildfield residents were continuing with their opposition to a cell tower by Bell Mobility going into their area.

Some of them appeared before Town council, with spokesperson Dan O'Reilly saying they wanted council to oppose the application because it doesn't meet the Town's own protocol for establishing telecommunications facilities.

"We can assure you this tower won't be sensitive to the adjacent homeowners or Wildfield as a whole," O'Reilly said. "It will dominate the landscape, stick out like a sore thumb and seriously impinge on the character and dignity of St. Patrick's Church, which at most, is only 1,200 feet away."

"There is no reason Bell couldn't consider installing cell towers in field away from residential areas," he added. "This should apply throughout Caledon and not just Wildfield, but Bell doesn't want to do that because of the additional power installation costs."

Councillor Richard Whitehead commented on the importance of going through the planning study for Wildfield and its impact areas.

"As a hamlet it's threatened unless we do something meaningful from a planning point of view," he said.

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James Bolton Public School opened its outdoor classroom. It was the result of 18 months work and more than 1,000 volunteer hours.

* * * * * * * Town Treasurer Sam Jones updated councillors on the municipality's reserves, stating they were in good shape.

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Students at King's College received a lesson on how to get ahead in politics from two successful local practitioners.

Mayor Marolyn Morrison and Dufferin - Caledon MP David Tilson talked to them on how they got where they are.

Morrison told them they should always have values, recalling she was a volunteer in her community when people asked her to run for school trustee. She was elected to the Peel board of education in 1988 and served for six years.

"I was honest," she said. "I wasn't parochial. I can see the big picture."

"I love being the mayor of Caledon," she added, explaining it allows her to express her vision for the Town. "I've had a passion for everything I've done."

Tilson said when he was a student he was "an absolute disaster."

He went to study at the University of New Brunswick, stating "I didn't have a clue as to what to do."

He explained he had no sign of leadership in elementary or high school, but at university he got involved with the track team and in local drama where he produced, directed and performed in a couple of shows.

"You build on things," he said.

"Anyone can be a politician," he said, adding he loves his job but it can be tough. "You have to develop a tough skin. But a lot of people come up and congratulate you."

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Caledon OPP was reported to be "light years ahead" when it comes to its traffic management plan.

Inspector Andy Karski gave that word to Caledon council, stating their concentration on "hot spots" was being adopted throughout OPP.

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Caledon Community Services lost their director of support services when Karen Markham retired after 15 years on the job. A bench was dedicated in her honour at the Goodfellow Professional Centre in Bolton.

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James Dick Construction announced it would build helicopter pads at its Caledon pits to help facilitate emergency landings of air ambulances at night.

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Peel Region was involved in its monitoring for the presence of West Nile Virus.

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Bolton resident Laura Grossi was crowned the first ever Schomberg Idol. The competition, which started the previous fall, ended at Schomberg Agricultural Fair, held the last weekend of May.

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Caledon had to go looking for another CAO after Pat Moyle tendered his resignation. He went on to be CAO for Halton Region.

There was a contest shaping up to see who would carry the Green party's colours in Dufferin -